Just got out of a screening of the new 4K remaster. Great movie with some flaws that are more glaring than I remember.

The bad:
*The quality of the score varies wildly— impactful, stirring music in some sequences and then made-for-TV quality schlock in others.
*This is not a George Lucas-style special edition. None of the effects shots appear to have been touched at all. That’s not a bad thing necessarily but there are a couple shots at the end that look quite bad (blurriness and transparency).
*The last 15 minutes after the dive (inclusive of the special edition sequences) are heavy handed and jarringly mediocre.

The good:
*Everything up to the end is pretty damn great.
*The water tentacle effects work still holds up. Amazing.
*That CPR scene is as good as anything you’ll ever see in a movie. You could hear a pin drop in the theater. Master filmmaking.

So glad I got to see it in a theater. It mostly looked great. But I’ll also say I’m no longer in a rush to buy the 4K disc when it comes out. There’s nothing here, other than nostalgia, that makes me feel this is a must buy. If I do, it’ll be for the special features—I remember the documentary being outstanding.

Here’s hoping they rerelease the Aliens 4K remaster in theaters as well.

The background from Big Jim, for those unaware:

Yeah I always felt like it fell apart in the last 20 minutes or so. Still jealous of the big screen 4k, I’d love to see that.

And, Jim, PLEASE stop wasting your time on Avatar!!!